Hey guys!!!I'm looking on the web to find a way to build a working radar for my 1/32 Statia Relaint tug.I don't like the idea of feeding the radar movement from the bottom with a rod but rather with pulleys or a micro motor with low rpm that would fit under the radar base.(Third photo to the right).By the way, the radar base will be aproximatly 3/4"-12/16"I know you guys have,the answer to any of our rookie questions.Thank you for your anticipated cooperation.

Hi chugalone100It would appear you have already worked out that some sort of pulley may be an option. Angled small gears may also work but there may not be the space available and you would probably need to make your own.I did buy from http://www.gizmoszone.com/ some very small (6mm) planetary geared motors that run on 3volts and are certainly suitable for your purpose via a pulley system. Using 1.5 volts gave a very realistic speed.Using one of these motors should allow you to use two small pulleys on the mast, where I suspect space will be limited. I would make sure you will always have access to the pulleys and belts as they will almost certainly need servicing over time.Hope this helps and please post details of the setup.Dave

Hi all, for my MS Hotspur radar (mounted on the gun director tower above the bridge) I used an old linear servo, God knows where it came from or who made it! I just disconnected the feedback pot and fed the motor with 1.5V, D-size alkaline cell, which drove it at about 2 RPM and lasted for years! 😊 I know, it should have a Yagi array sticking out the front! First the motion - then the detail 😉 Cheers Doug 😎PS Crewman swabbing the deck has been shanghaied from Monty's 8th Army. I converted his minesweeper to a broom 😉

Doug:I have seen this website.Very little information about the gears he used.But is a place to start planning the way I will build my antenna.About the servos, I found a mini servo with continuos rotation on eBay and thats another option Im looking at.👍Thank youJulian

Hi Dave, I did! Same result no matter which link i tried - Timeout'! 🤔😭Ho Hum! I'm obviously not meant to know 😉Never mind I have sources of micro motors over here.Have already bought several for the planned Plastic Magic projects.All the best, Doug 😎

Hi ChugaloneChris Brown used to do a very small motor ideal for radars working on about 1.5 to 3 Volts. You may be able to hide it in the base of the radar bottom piece. I looked on his site but couldn't see them, he usually has them at various shows. give him a phone call for details.http://www.christopher-wyn-brown.co.uk/Hope this helps.regardsMike

Even 31000 rpm depending on model and voltage! And without gearbox!!!BUT, if you choose the right one, with gear ratio 699.55 to 1 then you can get it down to 14 rpm or less. 😊Moral: read the whole sheet! 😉Cheers Doug 😎

Hi JulianAs Doug has already commented this is a very small coreless geared motor that reduces the revs down to slow speeds. They are incredibly small powerful and quiet. I have a stripped down minature servo in my Trent lifeboat which gives the required speed but it is exceptionally noisy, especially when used in a display environment. This motor is the best I have found on the market and is certainly suitable for your purpose.I do hope you manage to find the solution for your radar and that you share how on the forum.CheersDave

Thank you Dave and Doug.Now I understand.As you guys have notice, I will rely on your experiences to set up all the electronics.I'm still working on the structure but thinking ahead to know how to build around the electronics.Whenever I see that I'm asking dumb, irritable questions, I will stop.Hoping I will never exhaust you guys.

Julian😎"There is more happiness in giving than there is in receiving."

Hi JulianPlease keep asking your questions. As a newbie you may well not understand everything we explain. You will not be alone so by asking questions there may well be others who will benefit from further advice and clarification.The more people we can interest in our hobby the better and I am more than happy to give help and advice.Best wishesDave

Doug:I enormeously appreciate all of your advises that everyone has given me in this place including yours. Maybe because I come from another culture (Cuban) very much different from yours, sometimes I have said or posted something that to you, it might not make any sense. I'm sorry, I'll try better next time.

Giving / receiving?:

The wisest man who ever lived said: “There is more happiness in giving than in receiving.” Do you believe in this principle? If so, then perhaps you have wondered what kind of giving is the most valuable. What kind of giving really produces that deep sense of happiness that eclipses receiving?

or 'never exhaust' :

v. ex·haust·ed, ex·haust·ing, ex·haustsv.tr.1. To make extremely weary; wear out. See Synonyms at tire1.2.a. To remove a resource from; deplete: tobacco crops that exhausted the soil of nutrients.b. To use up completely: a costly project that exhausted our funds. See Synonyms at deplete.3. To discuss or treat completely; cover thoroughly: exhaust a topic.

Julian😎"There is more happiness in giving than there is in receiving."

Hi Julian, Don't panic ! My comment above was a stupid joke directed at Wayne (Midlife306) and his comment about what his wife always says! 😎No reflection at all on your posts or questions intended. Just my weird British sense of humour 🤔 Similar to Wayne's!By the way: complementos on your English 👍 Much better than my Spanish, despite having worked with South American navies (mainly Brazil (Portuguese I know!), Chile and Ecuador) for several years. "It is better to give than receive" and "It is better to travel hopefully than to arrive!" I just realised that you are in Dade County FL 👍 Nice place to live, haven't been there for years but liked it very much in the nineties; Hurricane Andrew and all that. Still have the 'I survived Hurricane Andrew' T Shirt! Saludos Doug 😎

Hi Chugalone 100, i have an 8' 6" long model of HMS Fearless with the servo in the mast running two radars at different speeds via pully and elastic bands, works well since the launch six years ago.If you make your mast a lift of fit at the radar arm you can mount the servo in the main part of your mast, micro servo from Rapid electronics in Colchester for £4.20.. good deal and excellent.

Doug:Hurricane Andrew??WOWDuring those years I had a small carpentry business dedicated to the selling, finishing and installing doors, so I was booked with work for an entire year.Made so much money, bought a good house, and now is paid for.Again “Gracias” for every input from all you guys.

Dennis:Thank you for your feedback about the radars.I believe you have your pulleys hidden under the pilots cabin.I have very little room for that type of set up, so I think the best way is to purchase the small motor that Doug recommended without any mayor wiggling.Show me some pictures, or I believe I have seen your set up in this forum.

'It's an ill wind that blows nobody any good'!! 👍👍😁I was peed off then cos Andrew meant that the Everglades and Keys were closed off which meant that my plan to drive right down the Keys went down the tube 😭So instead I headed North, also interesting, and drier 👍😊

Hi Julian, don't know exactly how much room you have under the radar mount but I still think you will need a couple of pulleys! Motor mounted out of sight underneath the mast - shaft running up the mast to pulley #1 - pulley #2 mounted at end of the boom underneath the the radar mount.Choose ratio of diameter pulley 1 to 2 according to the space available and final rotation rate (RPM) you want. Strong rubber band to connect the two pulleys. Didn't need this method for my destroyer radar cos it sat right on top of the Director Tower, but used the pulley principle for gun turret rotation to connect two turrets together! 👍One servo with extended rotation arc and two pulleys.Cheers Doug 😎

Hmm! Up to you - but I believe that with a motor + gearbox length of ~ 1.25" plus room for cable connections dat woin't woik! 😭So, it's now past 1am here in Munich so Gute Nacht, Good Night, Buenos Noches! 😎

Hi JulianMy 1:32 Trent lifeboat has a similar radar housing to your model. I made my radar casing around a very small servo with the feedback removed plus the the internal pins to allow for continuous rotation. You can remove the bottom part of the servo casing to make it even smaller. Mine sticks thro the top of the radar case and I plug the radar scanner onto the serrated drive.It worked fine but I subsequently removed the electrics and drive the motor via a voltage reducer ( I make my own based on a 317 chip) but they are cheap to buy.The real problem is the noise of the cheap gearing in the minature servos. OK on the water but very noisy if you are exhibiting inside.See picsDave

Hi Julian, I think that's the easiest in the long run given the space available.👍 Also simplest (and quietest) way to get the drive round 90° corners 😉If you don't have / can't find a suitable size rubber band get a length of round silicon rubber gasket material ca 1 to 2mm diameter. This you can cut to length (allowing for some tension) and join the ends with cyano adhesive. I used this method for the sealing gasket on my Type IIA sub. No leaks 😊 Have fun,😎 DougBTW: old stripped out video recorders / players are a good source of cogs, pulleys and drive belts 😉

Hi JulianOnly 8pm when I posted so not that late.May be small enough but is there a splined drive output underneath that top casing? You may need to add a short extension to the output. Could just be a bad pic as other sellers (Rapid) show similar with a spline above the top casing.I attach a pic of a similar type to the one I used. This is one that burned out in my yacht. Metal gears so kept the case for spares. The motor melted!23mm long 10mm wide 25mm deep from base to bottom of spline. 18mm if you remove the bottom casing.Regarding suitability: are you intending to run the motor direct from a battery? The motor is very small and you will need to keep the voltage and current low (2v) to avoid overheating. The pulse internal driver will take care of this but without the electronics the motor needs protection.Using the pulse system from the Rx will require three wires and a spare channel on the tx/rx. Hope you can find a suitable servoCheersdave

Don't over-engineer. My destroyer radar works perfectly well totally independent of the RC! I just use the servo motor and gearing. Output shaft connected to the radar drive shaft with tight PTFE sleeving stripped from cable (13A mains or similar). Heat shrink sleeve also works well. Power comes from a single 1.5V dry cell and switch hidden inside the bridge. A C or D size cell lasts for years & years & ...Simply switch on before launching. Couldn't be simpler and no wasted RC channel 😊 In effect it's just a simple geared motor with no unnecessary frills. Cheers Doug 😎

Doug:Yes, I was contemplating the idea of running the radar via small dc with a separate switch, that way I wouldn’t need to use a channel.I have been inspecting lots of different wiring diagrams to set up my electronics from Action Electronics.Looking at them I’m beginning to understand how to embrace the project and of course, you guys will give me the last word.By the way, I love your models, they look impeccable inside and out.